CBP Official Expects More Activity on UFLPA Entity List 'on the Horizon'

"Activity" is "on the horizon" related to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act Entity List, Lesleyanne Kessler, CBP’s deputy associate chief counsel, said at an event on June 13. Following the recent addition of new companies to the list for the first time since the list was released in June 2022 (see 2306090011), Kessler said she expects the process for an interagency task force to add companies or remove them from the list "will be moving ahead in the coming year."

Speaking during the Georgetown Law International Trade Update, Kessler noted the rebuttable presumption that applies to both merchandise related to China's Xinjiang province and UFLPA Entity List companies. She said that while companies can seek customs rulings that their supply chains are free from UFLPA, the ruling won't act as a get out of jail free card “If you get a ruling that says your supply chain is free of UFLPA or is free of forced labor, you still have to show on importation that those goods match” the ruling that was provided, Kessler said.

Kessler was also asked about the lack of a de minimis exception, saying that the reason for that, she thinks, is that Congress “meant for this to be a very heavy-handed law that forces compliance in every aspect of the supply chain.” If you are unhappy with the law or the lack of a de minimis exception “you should talk to your congressperson,” Kessler said.

Despite the lack of de minimis, customs lawyer Sarah Wyss noted that there seems to be a "willingness" at CBP to not require "every tiny bit of documentation for every last thread."

Kessler responded that CBP enforces "all of the laws that we're charged with enforcing and administering with a risk-based approach” and CBP has no desire to have every shipment of “textiles or any other shipment sitting on the docks for months and months and months." She said "the agency tries to be extremely reasonable in working with importers” so that it “can make a good decision based on the information that's been submitted.”

Wyss also discussed model contract clauses released by the American Bar Association, and how they can help companies trying to be compliant with UFLPA. If clients or companies are looking to “cut and paste contract clauses, to incorporate UFLPA compliance or other forced labor compliance into their existing contracts,” the model contract clauses are “a really good place to start,” she said. The model contract clauses are “really a modular approach that can be used across sectors, and it's really a high level resource for company-wide policies,” Wyss said.